Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Solving the Rubik's Cube of Plainfield politics will determine whether the city moves forward at all under soon-to-be-sworn-in Mayor-elect Adrian Mapp.

As Plainfield Today predicted, Gloria Taylor,
retired educator and widow of the late mayor Rick Taylor, was selected
by the City Council in a 5-1 vote at Monday evening's special Council
meeting to fill Mapp's vacant Ward 3 seat until the next general election.

The other two items on the agenda -- appointing members to the
African-Caribbean Commission and to the Citizens Emergency Response Team
(CERT) -- were passed as proposed by outgoing Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs without any changes.

The alignment of the Council majority (now expected to be enhanced with
Taylor on board) puts the issue of learning to live with compromise on
the front burner.

In my thirty years of watching and participating in Plainfield politics it
seems that the three major forces -- Mayor, Council and Democratic
Party chair -- have never been on the same page more than momentarily.
The result has been that Plainfield lags behind other New Jersey
communities in developing economic opportunities and taking care of the
needs of its residents for jobs and services.

It all reminds me of Rubik's Cube, the popular twisty puzzle
invented in the 1970s. A cube with nine boxes in six different colors on
each side, and twistable in every direction, the point is to rearrange
the boxes so that each side of the cube is composed of boxes of one
color (read more about Rubik's Cube here).

There are more than 43 quintillion individual positions for the little boxes (that's 43 followed by 18 zeroes). Despite the mind-boggling number of combinations, it is possible to solve the puzzle in under one hundred moves.

And that seems to me to be a good metaphor for the challenge now facing Mayor-elect Mapp, the newly aligned Council and Democratic Party chairperson Assemblyman Jerry Green.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Plainfield's City Council gathers in a special meeting
tonight with three items of business -- filling the vacancy created by
the resignation of Mayor-elect Adrian Mapp from his Ward 3 council seat,
and the appointing of members to the newly created African-Caribbean
Commission and the Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT).

Attention will naturally be focused on the Council seat, where the Plainfield Democratic City Committee is offering three names arrived at at a meeting this past Friday: Don Davis, Gloria Taylor and Veronica Taylor (no relation).

Davis is a former Councilor for Ward 3. Gloria Taylor is a retired
educator and the widow of the late mayor Rick Taylor. Veronica Taylor,
known to all as Roni, campaigned tirelessly for Assemblyman Green's slate in the 2013 primary and general elections.

If the retired educator is selected, the Council would have a veto-proof
block of five Councilors (Brown, Greaves, Reid, Rivers and the expedted
newcomer) closely aligned with Plainfield Democratic Party chair
Assemblyman Jerry Green.

This would leave Councilors Storch and Williams as the only New Democrats, down from high of four seats just over a year ago.

It would also make Plainfield unique for having women filling five of the seven seats. That fact alone, however, would not guarantee a more irenic atmosphere.

Which leads us to the other items of business tonight.

One of the complaints about the original CERT nominations was that the
nominees were mostly from the same neighborhood (coincidentally that of
outgoing Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs).

Another concern expressed by some was that the African-Caribbean
Commission, heavily weighted toward African members, seemed to be
intended as a political vehicle for Charles Eke, a PMUA commissioner who has shown an interest in elected office.

If these nominations move forward in their original form with no
adjustments, it would be fair to wonder whether a modus vivendi has been
worked out between the new mayor and the new Council.

And that would suggest the tone of relations between the executive and the legislative branches in Mapp's first year.

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Westminster Choir College senior Ashante Taylorcoxwill speak on her efforts to combat sex traffickingat St. Mark's Church on Sunday.

Ashante Taylorcox will speak at Youth Sunday
December 29 at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, addressing the issue of sex
trafficking and abuse and her efforts to combat it through her charity, The Akun Project.

A senior at Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, Ashante herself is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse.

Ashante will be making her second trip to Cambodia the following day to
do some serious work that she will share in her talk. She is developing a
new program for survivors of sex trafficking.

Ashante is the founder and president of The Akun Project, which works
with the Cambodian Kids Foundation to put an end to this heinous crime
and bring new life to its victims. A music major, Ashante will be doing
research on the role that music can play in the healing of human
trafficking victims, specifically sex trafficking victims, and the way
music can be used to address their trauma.

Her focus is twofold:

To
start and manage a song-writing group to help survivors address their
past trauma and abuse through song, empowering them to reclaim their
voice that was once trapped in a world that so persistently silenced
them; and

To
lay the ground work for the nonprofit organization she hopes to
establish, utilizing art-based music therapies for sex trafficking
survivors.

Ashante
plans to move to Cambodia after she graduates in May 2014 to continue
the project and to work on her nonprofit which will be based in
Cambodia.

St. Mark's Episcopal Church is at 1430 Park Avenue (at the South Plainfield town line). Parking is available in the church lot. The service starts at 10:30 AM.

Thursday, December 26, 2013

With the resignation by Mayor-elect Adrian Mapp of his Council seat
expected momentarily, the Plainfield Democratic City Committee will meet
at 7:00 PM Friday at the YWCA of Plainfield/North Plainfield to deal with the matter.

Under New Jersey law, the local party committee of the resigning Council
member can propose three names to the City Council, which then selects
one of those three to serve until the November general election, at
which time a duly elected candidate will be seated for the balance of
the councilmanic term.

While these sorts of choices have in the part had local political types
on tenterhooks, there is not much angst this time around.

Word in the street is that the three names to be proposed are former
Councilor Don Davis, whose previous term ended under something of a
cloud; Veronica (Roni) Taylor, a former Board of Ed member who
campaigned hard for Assemblyman Jerry Green's ticket in both the Primary
and the General elections; and Gloria Taylor, a retired educator and widow of former Mayor Rick Taylor.

Guests must sign in, but are always welcome, though they do not vote and
may not speak without permission (in advance) of the Chair, Assemblyman
Jerry Green.

The YWCA is at East Front and Church Streets, with parking in the YWCA lot on Church Street and on the street.

Plainfield's
2013 Kwanzaa
Celebration will be held Saturday, December 28, from Noon - 6:00 PM at
Washington Community School.
The free event is sponsored by the Recreation Division through and will
mark the final time that Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs will host the
annual event.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Make sure your Christmas Eve plans include a drive
through Plainfield's historic Netherwood Heights neighborhood (see the
map for general locations).

Every year since 2006, residents along the neighborhood's winding roads
join to line the streets with these festive holiday lights.

By 2012, the number of luminaries put out had reached 4,000, with 350
homes participating. This year's total is expected to reach nearly
5,000 luminaries, and has become one of the largest displays in the state.

'Preparations begin in early December, purchasing bags and luminary
candles. Martoccia Landscape Services of Watchung, graciously donates
the sand each year, too,' notes Jennifer Popper, president of Netherwood
Heights Neighbors. 'On Christmas Eve adults and children come together
to assemble the luminaries and place them across the neighborhood.
Many homes are decorated with holiday lights and this, coupled with the
luminaries, makes for a remarkable sight.'

The display starts at dusk on Christmas Eve and brings many visitors to the area.

The Netherwood Heights Historic District is named for the Netherwood
Hotel which stood at what is now the block bordered by Denmark Road,
Park Terrace, Belvidere Avenue and Berkeley Avenue. The 99 homes are
located along winding roads believed to be the original horse paths of
the hotel, which was built in 1878.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Plainfield politics watchers were somewhat on pins and
needles after City Council's December 9 meeting as to whether Mayor
Sharon Robinson-Briggs might veto any of the ordinances adopted.

There were a large number of ordinances (7), but most were unobjectionable tidying-up of zoning regulations (4). There were, however, three ordinances that the Mayor could have contested.

MC2013-18 is an ordinance to change (increase) the salary band for the
Chief Financial Officer to a new maximum of $155,000. The argument has
been advanced by several Council members that Plainfield's finances are
complex, and that attracting an experienced and competent CFO requires paying a more 'competitive' salary.

That may well be, but I have had my suspicions all along that the two
main reasons Plainfield has had trouble getting a full-time permanent
CFO since 2007 are 1) the Robinson-Briggs administration has not really
been all that interested in solving the problem, and 2) that
well-qualified candidates have been chary of Plainfield because of the Robinson-Briggs administration's dysfunctionality.

All of that is expected to change momentarily.

The other two ordinances (MC2013-19 and MC2013-20) established the new
position of 'Chief of Staff' to Mayor-elect Mapp and a salary band for
the job.

With the Council passing the ordinances, the only question was whether Mayor Robinson-Briggs would see fit to veto them.

The deadline was this past Thursday, at close of business.

The deadline passed without incident, which means the Councilors will not have to worry about interrupting their holidays with a special meeting to override any vetos.

Sunday, December 22, 2013

A lot of Plainfield homes get gussied up for the
holidays with everything from strings of lights to action figures on the
front lawns.

A brief item in the Ledger the other day caught my eye. In Clark, they
conduct an annual Holiday decorations contest (see the story here).

Homeowners may be nominated by themselves or others. The list is put
online, and residents may vote by email or by putting a paper ballot in a
box at the Town Hall.

A local merchant donates $50 gift certificates, which are awarded to
winners in three categories: Most Outrageous, Most Traditional, and
All-Round Favorite. Plus, winners get a lawn sign for bragging rights.

Seeing a lot of homes around town nicely decorated, it seems to me this could be a fun and positive Holiday activity for the Queen City.

Friday, December 20, 2013

Plainfield's Shiloh Baptist Church offers a special
holiday treat Saturdy afternoon with 'Jazz In The Sanctury', a celebration including songs for the season.

The program
features the Psalm 150 Quartet, consisting of Anthony E. Nelson, Jr. on
sax, Corcoran Holt on bass, Victor Jones on the drums, and Paul Odeh at
the piano. Special guest vocalist is Deborah M. Ford.

The program gets under way at 4:00 PM. The public is warmly invited. A free-will offering will be taken.

Senior Pastor Dr. Gerald Lamont Thomas welcomes all to the event. Shiloh
Baptist Church is at 515 West Fourth Street (at Liberty Street).
Parking available in the lot on West 5th Street. Visit Shiloh on the web
at www.shilohplainfield.org/.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

The toy drive for children of Plainfield's Elm-West Neighborhood Association is drawing to a close.

Unwrapped toys and/or gift cards are most welcome and may be left at
1083 Hillside Avenue (Carol and Jim's home) through Friday evening.

The party for the kids, sponsored by the New Democrats political club,
will take place on Saturday, December 21, from 2:00 - 4:00 PM at the
Elm-West Community Center, 543 West 4th Street (driveway is directly across from Shiloh Baptist Church).

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Checking
Plainfield's official website Monday, I was surprised to see the image
above as the new first item in the 'slideshow' on the front page. I did a
double-take: City Hall would close at Noon on Christmas Day?

... look closely...

Was the City truly vying with Scrooge? Or was it a mistake?

By evening, the graphic had changed to the following --

...which was 'corrected' by evening to this.

Better, but not exactly enlightening. Was someone actually expecting the City to be open for business on Christmas Day or New Year's?

My suspicion is that the reason for the notice in the first place was to
let folks know City Hall would close at Noon on THE DAY BEFORE THE
HOLIDAY, which in both cases falls on a Wednesday this go-round.

A good news brief meets the TAC test: it is timely, accurate and clear.

This little item gets one of three right, meaning 'no cigar'.

Hopefully, communications from the City will improve after January 1st.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Plainfield's Netherwood Heights Neighbors is circulating an email with a list of opportunities to brighten the Holiday season for fellow Plainfielders in need.

Please see below --

As snow falls on this Saturday,
we thought it was the perfect time to reach out and let you know about
some philanthropic holiday giving opportunities. We realize that there
are so many ways you can donate these days, but these, in particular,
benefit Plainfield-area families directly.

Please consider
clicking the social links above to share on Facebook and Twitter, too,
so other neighbors to whom we're not connected can help, too.

This
will be the 7th year Netherwood Heights Neighbors will sponsor food
baskets to be given to Plainfield families at Christmas. NHN buys both a
turkey and a ham for each family. The rest of the items in these
baskets filled with holiday cheer are donated by you, our generous
neighbors.

Requested items include, but are not limited to:

Canned goods (fruit, vegetables, drinks, soups, sauces, etc.)

Rice and Pasta

Cereal

Baking items, i.e. cake mixes, pancake mixes

Tea and Coffee

Candy and Cookies

Peanut Butter and Jelly

Other non-perishable food items

Reusable grocery bags like the cloth or plastic ones you buy at the supermarket to help us deliver the food.

Bring food items to Laura's house, and leave them on the front doorstep if she's not home. Donations accepted through Saturday afternoon, December 21st. New/non-expired items only, please.

Baskets will be delivered Sunday, December 22nd. If you would like to volunteer to help assemble or deliver baskets, send us an email: info@netherwoodheights.com.

Winter is upon us... and it's even colder if you don't have a coat to keep you warm and dry.

Please
help us help our Committee Chair, Louise, in gathering Winter coats -
children's sizes are especially appreciated - for our neighbors in need
in Plainfield. Louise will be bringing donations to be given out at
Grace Church.

You can put the coats in a plastic bag and drop them off on her front porch at 701 Belvidere.

Toy Drive

Toys
and gift cards are being collected to provide a wonderful holiday for
the children of the Elm-West Residents Association at a special
Holiday Party, right here in Plainfield.

Unwrapped toys for any
age and gift cards usable in area stores are most welcome. Donations
may be left at 1083 Hillside Avenue (the home of Carol & Jim) up
until Friday, December 20th. You can call Rebecca at (908) 447-6268 for more information, or she can come and pick up your gift!

All
look forward to a fun afternoon with the children, where toys will be
distributed, and there will be music and refreshments. Everyone is
welcome! You can download the flyer here.

Monday, December 16, 2013

Winter night in the Netherwood Heights Districtis featured as a card design.

Looking
for interesting stocking stuffers or small gifts for friends,
neighbors, family (or maybe yourself)? Check out these Plainfield-themed items from the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District, Netherwood Heights Neighbors, and Rebecca Williams' Baked By A Negro Cookie Company.

The 2014 calendar features District homes.

Van Wyck Brooks Historic District Calendar

The
District's 2014 wall calendar features color photos of a dozen
architectural gems from Plainfield's largest historic district. Some are
well-known, others are little gems that you may have passed by without
noticing. All are delightful reminders of Plainfield's architectural treasures.

Calendars are available by emailing District VP Larry Quirk at QMAN56@COMCAST.NET to make arrangements. They are $12/each if picked up and $15 if you want them mailed. Tax is included.

Proceeds benefit the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District's progrms and events, among which are its biennial House Tour and the ever-popular Twelfth Night Progressive Dinner.

Netherwood Heights Neighbors Holiday Cards

Netherwood
Heights Neighbors is offering a set of 25 Holiday Cards (with
envelopes) featuring this Historic District's distinctive homes and
winding lanes. The interior greeting reads 'Happy Holidays' and the
cards are perfect as a gift or for yourself if you -- like me -- are a
retro person and still appreciate a card with a personal note.

The box of 20 cards and envelopes is $25 and can be purchased by emailing the following: info@netherwoodheights.com. Tax included.

You can check out Netherwood Heights Neighbors' website (here) and see photos of their many activities, including the Holiday Luminaria, OktoberFest and the annual Blessing of the Animals.

Mmm... mmm... good!

Rebecca Williams' Baked By A Negro Cookies

What's
Christmas without cookies? If, like me, you do not bake (or bake well),
you will really appreciate these handcrafted goodies from the kitchen
of Plainfield's college professor and City Council member, Rebecca Williams.

Check ouf her website here, where you can drool over the descriptions of the nine varieties of scrumptious cookies she offers (don't miss the Southern Sweet Potato Praline Crumbles).
Those readers who have tasted her delicious at various community events
will be pleased to see some new ones have been added (view the cookies here).

Cookies are $13/lb, with free local delivery. Discounts are available on larger quantities of one flavor.

If you're watching your waistline (or if you just couldn't bear to actually give the cookies to someone), you can load up on Baked By a Negro gear here -- including Tees, mugs, caps and more.

The 109-year-old Plainfield-Westfield football rivalry has a chance at the national title in the contest sponsored by USAToday, but to succeed, fans of the two teams will have to roll up their sleeves and get to work -- voting.

The Plainfield-Westfield rivalry won its regional first place designation
this past Tuesday. Supporters have until next Wednesday, December 18 at
noon to cast their ballots. (Yes, you can vote more than once, and no,
you don't have to live in one of the two communities.)

The Cardinals and the Blue Devils have their work cut out for them. The rival teams won their divisional title with a vote of 42,013 -- besting their nearest rivals (Allegany vs. Fort Hill in Maryland) by nearly 7,000 votes.

But the Jersey duo will have their work cut out for them in the national
challenge: the top voter getter in the regionals was the rivalry
between Las Cruces and Mayfield in New Mexico, which logged in 220, 459 votes.

You know what to do!

Go to the USAToday contest website to vote (see here) and vote, and vote, and vote. And get your friends to vote. And your Aunt Millie and anyone else you can think of.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Two
favorite Plainfield holiday events are set for today, even as
snowflakes lightly fall: the First Unitarian Society's annual Crafts
Fair and the SID's Horse-and-wagon rides.

FUSP Crafts Fair

Smart
shoppers have kept this annual event on their calendar for years. Area
craftspersons -- including many from Plainfield -- offer their best
creations for holiday gift giving (or as a gift for yourself) in the
Parish Hall and the educational wing. (I never miss the opportunity to
sample the delicious homemade baked goods offered as snacks in the Stevens Room.)

The festive evening of caroling, gift-giving and refreshments has become the Museum's main family event over the years, eagerly looked forward to by youngsters from the neighborhood as well as residents from all parts of the city.

A highlight, as always, will be a visit from Santa Claus, who will distribute gifts to each child and pose for photos.

The event will feature three themed trees in the first-floor period exhibit rooms and a grand decorated tree in the second-floor Ballroom, where the event is held.

A special treat will be the drawing for a decorated gingerbread house, which will become one family's to take along home.

Refreshments will be offered to all to conclude the festive evening.

The Tree Lighting gets under way at 6:00 PM.

The Drake House Museum at 602 West Front Street (at the foot of
Plainfield Avenue) is open to the public Sunday afternoons from 2:00 -
4:00 PM, and at other times by appointment. For more information, call
(908) 755-5831 or visit the website at www.drakehouseplainfieldnj.org/.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Fences have suddenly sprouted on two projectsat the corner of Gavett Place and East Second Street.

Plainfield
development-watchers have been puzzled in recent months by the apparent
withdrawal of Frank Cretella and his Landmark Developers entities with
regard to the plethora of downtown projects the restaurateur-cum-developer had planned.

The perplexity only increased after Cretella lost out on the public
bidding for a scarce-as-hen's-teeth liquor license recently by a mere
couple of thousand dollars.

On a chicken soup run Thursday evening, I noticed that the two small
parking lots on the corners of Gavett Place and East Second Street were
sporting brand new chain link fences, fences which I did not recall seeing there on
Wednesday.

The lot on the southwest corner has been used by attendees at the mosque
adjacent to it and facing North Avenue for several years now. It was
unusual in that the mosque members had developed a system of tandem parking
which allowed for maximum vehicles on the cramped little space.

Cretella has plans for loft apartments in both the former Boise's warehouse and the former Romond Jeep dealership.

A pile of debris removed from the Boise's building lay next to the
structure and behind the fencing, indicating workers had been active in
the past day or two.

Progress on these two projects would be the first since Cretella
developed the old United National Bank annex and the former Courier News
building, both on Park Avenue, into rental apartments.

Is this a sign of things to come under a long-awaited Mapp administration?

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Plainfield
Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs is scheduled to make ten promotions in the
Fire Division this morning, according to sources in City Hall. The
ceremonies are said to be taking place at Fire Headquarters instead of
the usual location at City Hall Library.

No public announcement has been made, so the names and ranks to which the firefighters are being promoted will not be known until after the fact.

Unaddressed is the issue of funding the salaries of the newly promoted
personnel. In a recent spate of police promotions, the Robinson-Briggs
administration came to City Council after the fact seeking a swap of
budget monies to cover those promotions.

Robinson-Briggs has artfully taken the 'lame' out of lame duckness, that is for sure.

Plainfield resident since 1983. Retired as the city's Public Information Officer in 2006; prior to that Community Programs Coordinator for the Plainfield Public Library. Founding member and past president of: Faith, Bricks & Mortar; Residents Supporting Victorian Plainfield; and PCO (the outreach nonprofit of Grace Episcopal Church). Supporter of the Library, Symphony and Historic Society as well as other community groups, and active in Democratic politics.